How can we know if the differences in wages between men and women are caused by discrimination or differences in background characteristics? In this PhD-level course we look at causal effects as opposed to spurious relationships. We will discuss how they can be identified in the social sciences using quantitative data, and describe how this can help us understand social mechanisms.

From the lesson

The Multivariate Regression Model and Mediating Factors

This second module introduces you multivariate regression model and the concept of mediating factors.